Dr. Thomas Turner (Principle Investigator)
Email: turnert@unm.edu
Researchgate and Scholar profile
I study evolution and ecology of aquatic species, populations, and communities. I use theory, isotopes, genomes, museum resources and experiments to ask questions about the impacts of life history, disturbance, climate and land-use changes, and phylogenetic and geological history on biodiversity. I serve on the Independent Science Advisory Board for the Columbia Basin Fish & Wildlife Program, the Gila Trout and Chihuahua Chub Recovery Team, and the Executive Committee of the Middle Rio Grande Endangered Species Act Collaborative Program. I am a Professor of Biology and Curator of Fishes in the Museum of Southwestern Biology.

Affiliated Scientists

Dr. Megan Osborne (Senior Research Scientist)
Email: mosborne@unm.edu
Megan's web site and Scholar profile
I am an evolutionary biologist with expertise in conservation and population genetics, systematics and phylogeography across a broad suite of taxa including fishes, marsupials, birds, amphibians and reptiles. I use empirical genetic data to understand how geological and contemporary processes act to shape how species and their genetic legacy are distributed in space and time. For the past 15 years, I have worked in the arid and semi-arid regions of the American Southwest on population genetics and phylogeography of freshwater fishes of the Rio Grande, Colorado River and Canadian River basins. Current research projects include using parentage analysis to understand the reproductive ecology of Bonytail, long-term genetic monitoring of the Rio Grande silvery minnow and comparative population genetics of Pecos and Canadian River fishes.

Graduate Students

David Camak (PhD Candidate)
Email: dcamak@unm.edu
David's Scholar profile
My broad interests include ichthyology, population genetics, bioinformatics, and conservation. My research involves using population genetics and bioinformatics methods to assess the dynamics of populations of species that are at risk of extinction in order to guide management decisions. My focal group is the Gila Trout (Oncorhynchus gilae), a federally listed salmonid species native to tributaries of the Gila River in New Mexico and Arizona. Specifically, my work addresses potential threats to Gila Trout including, but not limited to, introgressive hybridization with nonnative Rainbow Trout (O. mykiss), significant population bottlenecks, fragmentation, and significant habitat changes caused by climate change.

Alex Cameron (PhD Student)
Email: alcameron@unm.edu
Alex's Scholar profile 
Broadly, I am interested in how genetic processes at the population level vary throughout a species’ range and in turn how this genetic variation may ultimately lead to local adaptation. Prior to joining the Turner lab, my research was predominately focused on lungless salamanders in the genus Plethodon, and spanned a variety of topics including general ecology, genetic marker development, and landscape genetics. My dissertation research is focused on implementing Next-Generation Sequencing methods for a range-wide genetic assessment of two federally listed cyprinids endemic to the Gila River basin, the Loach Minnow (Tiaroga cobitis) and Spikedace (Meda fulgida).

Katelyn Driscoll (PhD Student)
Email: katelyndriscoll@fs.fed.us
Katelyn's Scholar profile
I received my BS in Biology and a Spanish minor from Gonzaga University in Spokane, WA in 2010 and earned my MS in Systems Ecology from the University of Montana in 2015. I currently works as a Research Ecologist for the USFS Rocky Mountain Research Station while pursuing my PhD at the University of New Mexico. I am interested in how the structure and function of riparian, aquatic, and groundwater-dependent ecosystems are impacted at large scales by restoration and interacting disturbances. I use diverse tools including field work, modeling, and remote sensing techniques to understand these topics.

Gregor Hamilton (PhD Student)
Email: ghamilton@unm.edu
I have previously worked largely with reptiles, including Narrow-headed Garter Snakes (Thamnophis rufipunctatus), Dune Sagebrush Lizards (Sceloporus arenicolus), and King Cobras (Ophiophagus hannah). My current research focuses on the effects of invasive aquatic species on freshwater food webs and how this affects subsides in riparian food webs. I utilize a variety of tools such as stable isotope analysis and mesocosm experiments to investigate these sorts of questions.

Undergraduates

Charissa Bell
As a technician in the Turner Lab, I have worked primarily with the Rio Grande Slivery Minnow (Hybognathus amarus). The project I work on involves genotyping wild and stocked individuals in order to monitor genetic diversity throughout the Middle Rio Grande. I will graduate in May of 2019 with a degree in Biology and I am interested in pursuing graduate school to further my education in ichthyological research.

Brian Fitzgerald
I am currently an undergraduate student pursuing a degree in biochemistry at the University of New Mexico and a career in medicine after graduation. I have been a member of the Turner lab since September of 2016. In that time, I have assisted with laboratory work investigating the molecular ecology of several native fish species.